Pearl Transport does grain hauling and long-haul out of Manitoba, Canada. Around 15 years ago, they implemented a software system that “made everything easier.” We stopped in for a chat with their accountant, Jackie, to learn how Axon Software helps them streamline and manage the company.
Q&A
Tell us about yourself and the company.
My name is Jackie Kehler. I work for Pearl Transport. I’ve been with the company for just over three years doing the accounting and bookwork. We’re located in Landmark, Manitoba. We do grain hauling and long-distance interprovincial and state trucking within Canada and the US.
I used Axon Software at a previous company too, and Pearl Transport has been using Axon since 2009. Axon has streamlined everything. It has made it easier for invoicing, easier for dispatch, easier for fuel tax, payroll, everything. It’s all in one system that takes care of everything.
How does your invoicing process work now?
When we receive the drivers’ envelopes, we separate the bills of lading, all the invoices, and then we go into the system. Everything is already there from the dispatch department. Then we just match it up and we are able to generate the invoice.
Do the drivers ever have questions or concerns about their statements?
For the owner operator statements that we issue, I have not received any complaints.
If they have any questions, I’ll go over it with them one or two times. After that, they seem to be able to understand. They’re pretty simple to understand. It’s line by line and they can read it.
I send out a driver settlement prior to generating payroll. The drivers can go through them and make sure everything is correct. If I don’t hear back by a certain deadline, I’ll generate the payroll. If there are any issues or anything that has to be adjusted, it’s easy to adjust for the next payroll. Yeah, it’s pretty straightforward.
Has the reporting system been able to get management the information they need?
It’s simple. You go into the financial area and generate your balance sheet, your cash flow statement, your income statement, or whatever you need. It’s all there. As long as everything has been entered, it’s all there.
Has Axon helped when customers call in with questions?
Oh, when a customer calls for invoice information, either payables or receivables, it’s there at the touch of your fingers. You can type in their invoice number and search for it. It’s right there – everything you entered. I’ve found it easy to put a description in the payable to ensure that we have the right information and are able to give the customers the right information.
How long do you think it would take Axon to pay for itself?
In my past experience, I would say within a year it probably paid for itself. I think that we would probably have an additional three employees otherwise to try and get the paperwork done.
I worked with Axon at a prior company too and, before I was introduced to Axon, we were using a different program which was just for accounting. Dispatch was all done manually, and in communications between the two there was a lot of lost information. Axon streamlined everything. Once we get the order, we enter everything in there and we are able to dispatch and invoice from there. I find that it’s so easy to use.
How do you find customer support from Axon?
Anytime something comes up, I contact Axon and the response I get is so helpful. I had a contact person there that I loved called Danielle. She was so, so good. I haven’t spoken to her for a while, but she was awesome. It’s funny because sometimes I’ll call and then answer my own question before they can, because I’ve had experience with Axon for a few years.
When we call, I always get a quick callback, so I would say that’s good.
If anyone in the industry asked about your experience with Axon, what would you say?
Oh, it’s great. I’ve recommended it to other companies and was able to get some people on board. Their feedback when they were on board was that they really loved it. So, I would highly recommend it to anybody.
If we were to increase our fleet at this point by 25%, we wouldn’t have to add any more office personnel to do the work because Axon makes it so easy. Adding one, two, three, four, or ten trucks doesn’t really impact the staff.
